Battle Royal; or, The Invisible Man

Battle Royal; or, The Invisible Man Summary | Detailed Summary

Originally published as a short story, "Battle Royal" would eventually become the first chapter of Ralph Ellison's critically acclaimed novel Invisible Man. "Battle Royal" is the story of a young black man who is invited to deliver his much lauded graduation speech to a gathering of prominent white citizens.

The unnamed narrator begins with a confession: For twenty years he has allowed himself to be defined by other people's expectations. While he has since come to realize the folly of this thinking, the process of change has been slow and painful. This change began, he reveals, with the discovery that he is an "invisible man."

The narrator presents himself as the product of his enslaved ancestors, now regretting the shame he once held for this heritage. While his parents subscribe to the "separate-but-equal" paradigm, the narrator's grandfather reveals on his deathbed that he has "been a traitor all my born days, a spy in the enemy's country." He recommends that future generations overcome their white oppressors by feigning obedience, amicability and humility. The family is horrified by the grandfather's words and the narrator, only a child at this point in time, is told to forget what he has heard. This "grandfather's curse" serves the narrator as a source of guilt, calling into question his every success in a white man's world.

The narrator, as a young man, arrives at the hotel ballroom where the gathering is to take place. A portable boxing ring sits on one side of the dance floor. Before giving his speech, he and his classmates are to entertain the assembled men by participating in a Battle Royal, a sort of free-for-all boxing match. Several of the narrator's classmates have already arrived, but he is reluctant to mingle, suggesting that the other boys are "tough," inferior brutes who don't like him anyway.

After donning their fighting togs, the boys are ushered out into a now smoky ballroom filled with drunken "big shots," such as bankers, lawyers, judges, doctors, fire chiefs, teachers and merchants -- all of them white. The men greet the boys with a mixture of hostility and amusement, crowding around them like an oppressive wall.

A naked blonde appears at one end of the mob, an American flag tattoo on her belly. The sight of this alluring white woman fills the boys with irrational guilt and fear. Some of the big shots threaten the boys if they look at the stripper, others threaten them if they do not. The narrator gazes at her fixedly, filled with powerful ambivalence. The rowdy men finally hoist the woman into the air and toss her around like a play-thing. Above her plastic smile, the narrator sees in the woman's eyes the mirror of his own terror and disgust.

Crying and hysterical, the boys are ushered into the ring and blindfolded with white cloth. Plunged into darkness, the narrator's thoughts turn from his speech to the terrible melee now filling his ears. He is terrified. The raucous white crowd shouts for blood; racial epitaphs flow readily. Finally making contact with the fray, the narrator is beaten down under a flurry of blows laid by multiple classmates. Hurt and bleeding, he pretends to be unconscious, but unseen hands pull the narrator back to his feet and push him back into the combat.

Returning to his feet, the he notes that his blindfold is askew. The narrator can make out shapes in the smoky darkness. He now sees that the fighting is vicious and unchecked, low blows and kicks abound, but with his vision restored he finds that he is less afraid. The narrator uses his sight as an advantage, avoiding blows and playing the blinded boys against one another, but doing so with enough subtlety so as not to arouse suspicion from the audience. The harder the boys fight, the more threatening the big shots become, but yet again the narrator finds his thoughts returning to his speech. How will it go? Will they recognize his ability? What will they give him?

The narrator is one of the two last boys standing in the ring, the other being the largest of his classmates. Both blindfolds are removed as the two boys face one another for the final bout. The narrator tries to collude with the other boy, offering him the winnings in exchange for a fall. The boy is uncooperative, seemingly determined to fight. The narrator fears that losing will ruin his chances of making a good impression with his speech. Only these men, the narrator feels, can judge his ability. Despite his best efforts, he loses, knocked flat by the larger boy. After the fight, the narrator sits in a bloody stupor as the other boys discuss how much they're likely to be paid.

The boys are called over to a rug piled high with money. The men explain that, when they give the word, the boys are to each take as much cash as they can grab. The narrator excitedly notes that there are gold coins in the mix,and begins formulating a plan to block the other boys while he grabs the precious coins and paper money. The word is given and the boys dive into the pile. However, the rug is electrified. The boys howl in pain as the current whips through their bodies. The assembled men lift one of the boys into the air and throw him onto the rug, where he writhes in convulsive agony.

The narrator grabs on to a chair leg to prevent one of the men from lifting him into the air. To his surprise, the narrator finds himself trying to topple the man himself on to the electrified rug. The man responds with a violent kick which sends the narrator sprawling over the rug and into a world of hurt. The rug slides out of place and the coins scatter across the floor. The "gold coins" turn out advertising tokens. As the boys scramble to collect the wayward cash, the M.C. ends the proceedings, telling the boys to go get dressed and to get their money. Each of the boys if paid five dollars, the last boy standing is paid ten. The narrator despairs that he won't have a chance to give his speech after all, when he is called back to the ballroom.

The narrator gives his speech with as much passion as he can muster, not realizing initially that his audience is laughing, jeering and talking all the while. The speech advises blacks to cultivate friendly relations with the Southern white man. The men often interrupt the speech to ask the young man to speak louder or to repeat himself. The narrator complies despite the pain and despite the blood collecting in his mouth. He eventually makes an error, mistakenly repeating the phrase "social responsibility" as "social equality." The mob turns hostile, demanding that he recant the words. The narrator apologizes, insisting that it was a mistake. The crowd calms down and the narrator finishes his speech. Afterward, the men gift the boy with a calfskin briefcase and a scholarship to the state college for Negroes.

That night, the narrator dreams that he and his grandfather are at a circus. The old man tells his grandson to open the briefcase. He does so. Inside he finds an official envelope stamped with a state seal. Opening it reveals another envelope, and beyond that another and another, endlessly. "Them's years" the grandfather says, "Now open that one." Inside the second envelope is a message in gold letters which reads "To Whom It May Concern. Keep This Nigger-Boy Running." The narrator wakes to his grandfather's laughter ringing in his ears.